Share This Story!

Opposing rallies focus on federal land dispute

ALAMOGORDO – The national Stand By Me for Liberty group will be holding a rally Saturday, July, 9, from noon – 3 p.m. at the Alameda Park and Zoo, 1321 N. White Sands Blvd., to peacefully protest the New Mexico Bureau of Land Management and the U.S.

Posted!

Join the Conversation

Comments

Welcome to our new and improved comments, which are for subscribers only.
This is a test to see whether we can improve the experience for you.
You do not need a Facebook profile to participate.

You will need to register before adding a comment.
Typed comments will be lost if you are not logged in.

Please be polite.
It's OK to disagree with someone's ideas, but personal attacks, insults, threats, hate speech, advocating violence and other violations can result in a ban.
If you see comments in violation of our community guidelines, please report them.

Opposing rallies focus on federal land dispute

Two opposing groups are protesting Saturday for and against the U.S. Forest Service fencing off grazing lands in the Lincoln National Forest in the Sacramento Mountains. Pictured is the Agua Chiquita riparian area near Weed, N.M. that the Forest Service has fenced off to protect the jumping mouse.(Photo: File)

ALAMOGORDO – The national Stand By Me for Liberty group will be holding a rally Saturday, July, 9, from noon – 3 p.m. at the Alameda Park and Zoo, 1321 N. White Sands Blvd., to peacefully protest the New Mexico Bureau of Land Management and the U.S. Forest Service for violations of rancher’s private property and water rights.

A group of Alamogordo residents will also hold a an opposing rally at a different location at the same time. Their rally will be held on the corner of White Sands Boulevard and 10th Street. They will be at the southeast, southwest and northeast corners.

New Mexico State Director for the Stand By Me for Liberty group Michael Bayless said Stand By Me for Liberty is an organization that wants to uphold the U.S. Constitution that includes ranchers and farmers.

“What we’re doing out there is protesting the overreach of the U.S. Forest Service and the Bureau of Land Management that’s encroaching upon rancher’s lands. They’re fencing off their water up there and doing the same thing they did up in Bunkerville, Nevada, and up in Oregon where they’re using the jumping mouse as an excuse like they used the Mojave Desert tortoise in Nevada,” Bayless said. “These environmental groups like the Sierra Club and so many others are getting on board with the USFS and BLM to protect an animal that’s not endangered to begin with. Even if they are endangered, they’re using that as a pretext to go after the ranchers, shutting off their water supplies that hinders the cows because they’re not able to produce properly and then they send the IRS on them because they’re behind on their payments on their taxes.”

Bayless alleges that federal agencies steal land to get the deposits they need and in turn sell them to foreign countries.

“You have all these agencies stealing their land to get the deposits which can be anything from uranium, copper, silver, gold or whatever have you,” he said. “It’s all a ploy by our corrupt government to steal land from these ranchers and take these deposits and sell them to China and Russia.”

Bayless said they will also bring attention to Robert LaVoy Finicum whose ideals they promote. Finicum was an Oregon Militia member and a cattle rancher involved in the 2014 Bundy standoff and the 2016 occupation of the Malheaur National Wildlife Refuge in Burns, Oregon. He was shot and killed while attempting to evade a roadblock while traveling outside the refuge.

“We’re going out there to protest that and to draw attention to Robert LaVoy Finicum as well as patriot political hostages,” he said. “They’re being illegally held on charges for exercising their Second Amendment right.”

He said guest speakers will include Otero County Sheriff Benny House and possibly County Commissioners. State Rep. Yvette Herrell, R-Dist. 51, Otero County Cattleman’s Association President Colt Howland and previous Cattleman’s Association President Gary Stone will also be in attendance at the rally.

Bayless said the whole community is invited to come out and show their support.

Democrat Denise A. Lang who is running for the state House District 51 seat against Herrell will be at the counter-protest because her group believes that national public lands should remain public for the enjoyment and use of every American citizen and the Stand By Me for Liberty organization are extremists.

She said the announcement of Otero County public leaders showing their support for the up and coming rally has sparked outrage from the Otero County Democrats.

In a press release, Lang stated that efforts to “transfer” national public lands to our state are efforts to steal the land from Americans from 49 other states.

“Americans from all 50 states and their ancestors have been paying to fight fires and manage our forests for over 100 years. Our state and county cannot afford to fight fires in our backyard,” Lang stated in the release. “When our state budget cannot cover firefighting costs, our state can then sell these lands to the highest bidder… and I like the idea of taxpayers from 49 other states pitching in to pay to fight fires in our backyard.”

Lang wrote she has family in law enforcement and she understands that at times they have no choice but to reach into their pockets and shoot if they are being threatened.

“I have family in law enforcement and I know that when someone says they will not be taken alive and then reaches into a pocket as Mr. Finicum did when the lawbreakers took over a national bird refuge, that person is committing suicide by ‘cop,’” Lang stated. “Law enforcement has no choice, unfortunately.”

Lang wrote that Democrat Merrie Lee Soules who is running for Congressional District 2 against Rep. Steve Pearce will be in attendance at the opposing rally.